There is a saying, “It takes one to know one.” I am a convicted felon, former CPA, and former criminal CFO of Crazy Eddie. Today, I teach law enforcement agencies and professionals how to identify fraud and train them to catch the crooks. This blog investigates white-collar crime, securities fraud, accounting irregularities, corruption, and other related topics. Accounting irregularities investigated by me are referred to appropriate government agencies as a whistleblower.

Wednesday, June 09, 2010

Last Friday, I was the key note speaker at the Oregon Health Care Fraud Working Group Training Seminar, sponsored by the United State Attorney's Office for the District of Oregon. I explained to the group that while emphasis on effective oversight and internal controls are important factors in preventing or deterring white-collar crime, not enough emphasis is given to the underlying psychology used by white-collar criminals to prey on their victims and effectively commit their crimes.

I have said many times that, "White-collar criminals consider your humanity as a weakness to be exploited in the execution of their crimes" and as the cold-blooded and ruthless criminal CFO of Crazy Eddie, I learned that you can steal far more with a smile than you can with a gun.

White-collar criminals use a combination of charm and deceit to achieve their objectives. The more likable and charming that I was as a criminal, the easier it was for me to successfully lie to my victims and deceive them. People are far less skeptical of people who they like and the white-collar criminals know it and exploit it.

Self-esteem is based on the realization of one's capacities, of what can do. Vanity is the feeling that admiration and exaltation should be expressed for what one has done"

Self-esteem is a positive character trait and unfortunately vanity helps build self-confidence and self-esteem. As a criminal, I took advantage of the vanity of my victims to make myself more likable to them, increase the likelihood that they would believe my lies. After all, who does not like a nice compliment, now and then?

For example, please watch the final scene of the movie "The Devil's Advocate," where Lucifer, played by Al Pacino, convinces attorney Kevin Lomax, played by Keanu Reeves, to do an exclusive newspaper story and afterwards, proudly exclaims "Vanity, definitely my favorite, sin." Link here.

Like Lucifer, vanity is the favorite sin of the white-collar criminal and vanity is part of everyone's humanity.

As the prisoner in The Lady and The Tiger conundrum, I’m left wondering whether Sam’s telling the truth, and he’s still a criminal, or lying and is really on the path to redemption.

I am sorry Ilene, but Antar does not give closure.

To the rest of you, beware of smiles and compliments. You never know the true intentions behind any person's charm.

I will never be able to get a date with anyone again, after this blog post!

Written by:

Sam E. Antar

Special thanks to the United State Attorney's Office for the District of Oregon, Tricia Leishman (Department of Justice) and Toni Slocum Regence (BlueCross Blue Shield). I donated my services and paid all travel, lodging etc. out of pocket as an accommodation to the Department of Justice.

I am a convicted felon and a former CPA. As the criminal CFO of Crazy Eddie, I helped Eddie Antar and other members of his family mastermind one of the largest securities frauds uncovered during the 1980's. I committed my crimes in cold-blood for fun and profit, and simply because I could.

If it weren't for the efforts of the FBI, SEC, Postal Inspector's Office, US Attorney's Office, and class action plaintiff's lawyers who investigated, prosecuted, and sued me, I would still be the criminal CFO of Crazy Eddie today.

There is a saying, "It takes one to know one." Today, I work very closely with the FBI, IRS, SEC, Justice Department, and other federal and state law enforcement agencies in training them to identify and catch white-collar criminals.

Recently, I exposed financial reporting violations by Overstock.com (NASDAQ: OSTK) as an independent whistleblower. The Securities and Exchange Commission is investigating Overstock.com and its CEO Patrick Byrne for securities law violations (Details here, here, and here).

I do not own Overstock.com securities long or short. My exposure of financial reporting violations by Overstock.com was a freebie to securities regulators to get me into heaven, though I doubt that I will ever get there.

I do not seek or want forgiveness for my vicious crimes from my victims. I plan on frying in hell with other white-collar criminals for a very long time.

1 comment:

That is one useful chunk of advise that anyone in business should heed. I would also add that the white-collar criminal who appeals to successful to the principals vanity is more than likely going to find him or herself in a position of authority where handling money or sensitive trade data becomes part of their job.

Why? Because they are now friends with the people who hand those jobs out and who could be more trustworthy that person as likeable as John Doe. They have shown they are "trustworthy".

If a person says he or she "never lies". You have a big liar on your hand that may be costing you more that you can imagine. I'm going through the nightmare of the big E right now because I made the mistake of giving the wrong person my trust as the author here mentions. Don't do it.

You can probably trust your dog. But even then you still have to verify there are no surprises that your going to step in late at night.

Contributor Articles

Crain's New York Business

New Jersey State Assembly Republican Policy Committee (08/17/09)

“White collar crime is more brutal than violence crime. The actions of one or a few corrupt public officials and corrupt businessmen affect the livelihoods of thousands of people. Treat them with the same disdain as we do treat serial killers because white collar criminals are economic predators. We are serial economic predators." -- Testimony of Sam Antar